793.94/5796
The Department of State to the French Embassy18
With regard to the inquiry19 whether the Chinese Government has sent to the American Government a memorandum disclaiming responsibility for any situation which may result from the exercise by the Chinese defensive forces of their legitimate right to resist aggressive action by Japanese troops taking advantage of their special privileges under the Boxer Protocol of 1901, the Department was informed on January 10, 1933, by the American Minister at Peiping that such a memorandum had been received. The Department on January 14, informed the Minister that it views this memorandum as a declaration by the Chinese Government made for the purpose of record and that, therefore, the declaration required no reply.
With regard to the statement giving the view of the French Government as to the purpose of the pertinent provisions of the Boxer Protocol of 1901 and the “Conditions for the Dissolution of the Provisional Government at Tientsin” of July 15, 1902, namely, that these provisions were designed to insure open communications between Peiping and the sea and to avoid contact between Chinese and foreign troops, the Department is in substantial accord with that view. With regard, however, to the “Conditions” referred to, the Department desires to point out that the American Government was not formally a party to these “Conditions”; and, although the American Government has on occasion cooperated with the powers signatory to those “Conditions”, in the spirit thereof, the Department feels that, in consequence of developments in China during the period since these agreements were concluded, and in the light of acquiescence by the powers on various occasions in activities by Chinese military forces [Page 99] in disregard of the letter of certain features of those provisions, and in view of existing circumstances in general, it can no longer with warrant be regarded as the mission of the foreign armed forces in China to maintain a constantly open highway of communications between Peiping and the sea, their mission now being rather that of special protection to the nationals and property of the Protocol powers and readiness to afford an armed escort in case at any time a policy of evacuation were decided upon.
With regard to the inquiry whether the American Government would not consider it necessary that the powers signatory to the documents referred to make known to the Japanese Government that the régime instituted by the provisions of those documents should be observed, the view of the Department is that, if Japan should take advantage of her rights under these provisions to conduct operations against Chinese forces, the powers signatory to the Boxer Protocol and to the “Conditions” would be justified in making an announcement that, in their opinion, Japan’s action could not in any way with warrant be based on the provisions of the Protocol and the “Conditions” and/or in making representations to Japan in the premises. The Department doubts whether the Japanese Government, if it is determined to make further invasion of Chinese territory, would pay any attention to such a démarche by the interested Protocol powers, but the Department does not feel that this should deter the powers from making an announcement of their views or a reservation of their rights.
With regard to the inquiry whether the American Government would be ready to give approval to the plan studied last September by the interested Ministers at Peiping for a neutralization of the Peiping and Tientsin areas, the Department, although it does not view this idea with as much favor as it did last autumn, would not be opposed to assisting in the proposal of such a plan if the Chinese, to a portion of whose territory it would relate, were to indicate a desire on their part for such an arrangement and/or if the other interested powers were to suggest it as a plan thought best designed to protect foreign interests in the present emergency.